


There'll Be Peace

by Latenightbookworm



Category: Supernatural
Genre: 15x20 fix it, ALL the comfort, Background Relationships, Background Saileen, Bi Dean not Bye Dean, Comfort, Episode Fix-It: s15e20 Carry On, F/M, Fix-It, Fluff, M/M, Sam Ships It, Sam Winchester Ships Castiel/Dean Winchester, none hurt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:27:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27731530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latenightbookworm/pseuds/Latenightbookworm
Summary: Dean doesn't die on the mime vampire hunt. When he gets out of the hospital he is determined to save Cas and tell him how he really feels.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester
Comments: 16
Kudos: 120





	1. Chapter 1

Dean opens his eyes and squints, everything too bright, too white. He is disoriented, not sure where he is; last thing he remembered was being shoved onto that rebar, thinking that was the end. He’s seen heaven before though and he’s pretty sure there’s usually more trees than this. As his eyes adjust, he realizes he’s staring at an unfamiliar ceiling, laying in an unfamiliar bed. Something is beeping to his left. It gets annoying really quickly and pulls him awake even more. He starts noticing a vague tightness in his chest that gets stronger the more he wakes up, morphing into a sharp pain he’s surprised he hadn’t noticed immediately.

Not heaven then.

He moves to rub at the pain, but his hand is connected to something. He looks down and finally realizes he’s in the hospital, his hand hooked up to IVs and his chest wrapped in bandages under the ugly hospital gown. He groans and looks around. Sam is impossibly curled up in a chair, snoring- how he manages to get all six feet four inches of him on a chair Dean will never figure out. Let the kid sleep, he thinks, though his brother sure isn’t a kid anymore. Neither is he, if he’s being honest, and isn’t that a strange thought. After everything they have dealt with, all the apocalypses and demons and God, he definitely never imagined he’d make it this far. Hoped, sure, but he never thought it would actually happen. Still, against all odds, here they are. And Dean…

Dean isn’t sure he wants to do this anymore. Now that his life is actually his, for the first time ever, he can let himself consider all those things he wanted but knew he could never have. Every time he thought he was getting close, especially that year and a half he spent with Lisa, something would happen to remind him it would never work, but he’s pretty sure that was all Chuck. Showing him how good it could be, planting that escape right in front of him, only to yank it away the moment he started to relax. Part of him still worries that might happen again if he tries, still waiting for the other shoe to drop. And maybe it kind of already has, Cas getting taken by the Empty right when Dean had heard those words he’d never dreamed he’d hear from him.

Thinking of Cas brings up something else Dean has been thinking of since defeating Chuck. He’d mourned the only way he’d known how until they came up with their plan, drinking himself to unconsciousness day after day, but once the plan was set in motion, he’d been too distracted. Ever since they had left Chuck powerless on the side of the road though, it had been the first thing on his mind every day - how to get Cas back. Cas had come back from the Empty before, but that was with Jack’s help, and he respected the kid’s decision to be completely hands off, welcomed it even. Without Jack’s help though, he’d need to find some way into the Empty. It would be the first thing he’d do when they got back to the bunker, Dean determined.

Sam snores louder, waking himself up with a jerk and almost falling out of his chair. Looking around, he sees Dean staring at him with a shit-eating grin.

“Not one word,” Sam says, pointing at him while he sits up. “How long have you been awake?”

“Not too long. Figured I’d let you sleep, you looked like you needed it,” Dean answered, still grinning.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up,” Sam mutters. “You’ve been out for three days, man, I’m exhausted.”

“Three?” Dean asks, surprised it was that long. “What exactly happened after I blacked out?”

“Yeah, couple surgeries the first day, they said it’d be normal for you to be out for a few days after. I called an ambulance, you were really scaring me. Kept asking me to tell you it was going to be ok, think you said Cas’ name a couple times. Told the paramedics when they got there we’d been attacked, but managed to fight them off, they didn’t really question it.”

“Well, good. Glad they didn’t look too close at the multiple vampire bodies around us,” Dean chuckles. “They all cleaned up?”

“Yeah, I called Donna to come take care of it,” Sam answers, “she’s taking care of Miracle too.”

“Awesome. When can I get out of here, this stupid gown needs to go, like, yesterday.”

Sam laughs at him, “You’ve always hated those things.”

“There are breezes where they don’t belong, Sammie! And this pattern looks like it came straight out of the 80’s, I mean, come on. They’ve got to have something better.” Dean is already starting to feel back to normal, bitching to his brother about stupid shit.

“Alright there Ralph Lauren, cool it,” Sam says sarcastically. “Doc said you can probably leave tomorrow, just hang in there one more day.”

***

Sam helps Dean down the stairs to the bunker and into his room. Miracle follows them the whole way, jumping up onto the bed with him as soon as Dean is settled. He hugs the dog close, giving him all the attention he missed the last four days, while Sam sets his bag down.

“You need anything else? Probably going to make some dinner soon if you want some,” Sam asks.

“Nah, probably just going to fall asleep honestly. Thanks, Sam.”

“Alright, well just holler if you need something. See you in the morning, Dean.”

As soon as Sam closes the door, Dean leans back, still petting Miracle. He feels tired, but has too many things on his mind to actually fall asleep. First and foremost, how the hell to get Cas back. When he’s circled around idea after idea for what feels like hours, his mind shifts to the job application on his desk that he hadn’t finished before they left on this hunt. It’s just a part time job at a bar, but it feels like one step out the door. He hasn’t said anything to Sam yet, not sure how he would take it. As much as he wants this, he feels guilty, like he’s abandoning Sam. He knows that’s ridiculous, it’s just a part time job, but he knows it’s because deep down, he wants to give up hunting altogether. Maybe not right away, but soon. 

He moves back away from that line of thinking, he hasn’t even got the application filled out completely yet, no use worrying about it too much. Instead, he goes back to thinking about Cas and what he’ll say to him if, no, when he gets him back. He finally falls asleep wondering if he even can come up with the right words to express his feelings.

***

The next morning, Dean stumbles into the kitchen, still pretty weak on his feet. He’d woken up three times last night, mind full of ways he might be able to save Cas. He thinks he might have come up with the bare bones of a plan though and wants to talk through it with Sam. Sam is already in the kitchen, finishing cooking breakfast when Dean sits at the table.

“That better be real bacon, Sam, or I’m going to riot,” Dean says.

“Yeah, right, I’d pay to see you try right now,” Sam laughs, setting a plate down in front of Dean. “But don’t worry, it is.”

“So I’ve been thinking,” Dean says as he tucks in, Sam grimacing at him for talking while he eats, “we’ve got to save Cas. I think I might have an idea.”

“Are you sure that’s possible? I mean, the Empty… that’s not something we’ve really dealt with before. And from the little bit you told me,” Sam side-eyes Dean, knowing there had to be more to the story than _The Empty took Billie and Cas_ , “it didn’t sound like something Cas could come back from this time.”

“No, Sam, we need to. I need to. Cas… said something right before and I can’t leave it at that,” Dean finishes softly.

Sam looks at him until it’s clear he’s not going to say anything else. “Alright, then. What’s the plan?”

“So I was thinking-”

There’s a knock at the door and they both look toward the sound, confused.

“We expecting anyone?” Dean asks.

Sam shakes his head and they both get up, moving toward the door. When they get there, Sam draws his gun, covering Dean as he opens the door to see who it could possibly be. Dean freezes, hand still on the door, eyes wide in shock.

“Cas?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas' side of things...

Time works differently in the Empty. Cas wasn’t sure how long he had been here, but ever since he and Billie got sucked in it had been chaos. Billie was furious that she had been taken down like this and had managed to keep the Empty busy this whole time. Thankfully because of her, it never got the chance to make them sleep, though Cas wasn’t entirely sure that was a good thing. Maybe it would have been better to be unaware of all this absolute nothingness around them, nothing to do, nowhere to go. Cas had been doing his best to stay out of their way as the two of them argued non stop. Billie seemed to think she would get to go back to being Death if the Empty let her go, but Cas wasn’t going to tell her that won’t happen. It’s as he was wandering as far away from them as he can, which for an unending void is pretty far, that he heard a whisper in his head. It got louder as he focused on it and he realized it was Dean’s voice.

“Cas, please, I don’t want to die, I’m not ready. Cas, I know you can’t hear me, but there’s no one else I’d want to talk to, I don’t, I don’t feel so good.”

Cas froze, shocked to be hearing Dean’s voice. It took him a moment before he realized what he was hearing. Dean’s voice sounded strained, like he’d been hurt, and Cas knew it must be bad if Dean was praying to a dead angel.

“I think this is it and I don’t- We just got our lives back, it’s not time. Cas… I miss you… I need to...”

Cas panicked, Dean’s voice seemed to be fading away again and he couldn’t let him go. Dean was right, it wasn’t his time. He couldn’t let him die, had to do something. His mind was racing, trying to come up with some way he could get back to help him, save him once more. As he stood frozen, he heard the Empty and Billie shouting.

“You’re a deity of a sort, this is what happens when you die!” the Empty was shouting. “Now shut UP already and GO TO SLEEP!”

Right then, it hit him. Cas was here because he was an angel. But if he were human, the Empty would have no hold on him. He wasn’t completely positive it would work, but it was the only shot he had. He quickly dropped his blade into his hand, knowing he had to do this while the Empty was still distracted, and made a cut on his neck. His Grace started flowing out and towards the Empty and he could feel himself growing weaker, but he could also see the black start to fade around him. As the flow started to lessen, he saw the Empty finally take notice. His Grace had reached it and was being absorbed into its nothingness. Cas knew this time, there would be no getting it back, but oddly enough, he felt completely fine with that knowledge. Maybe because this time it was entirely by choice, maybe because it was for Dean, Cas wasn’t sure. The Empty was racing toward him, but it seemed to be getting farther and farther away. The last little bit of his Grace left and the void around him disappeared like a bad dream into daylight. Cas, weakened, swayed on his feet and looked around himself. This place looked familiar. Noticing he was standing in a clearing that was a perfect circle, he realized where he was. This was where he had first saved Dean Winchester, pulling his soul out of hell and back to his body where it had been buried. The site, it seems, had never recovered, no new trees growing where this massive blast of power had occurred. Clearly his absolute focus on saving Dean again had brought him back to this place, the first place their souls had touched. Luckily, this wasn’t too far from the bunker. Cas is realizing now that he doesn’t even know where Dean was when he heard his prayer. Plus, now that he is human, he can’t heal him from whatever had happened. This was not his most well thought out plan, but hearing Dean dying like that overpowered any other thoughts he might have had. All he can do now is find his way to the bunker and have faith that Dean made it back alive. 

***

Cas speeds toward the bunker in the first empty car he had managed to find outside the forest, remembering now how much slower driving is than when he could just fly. He is frustrated by the amount of time it is taking him to get to the bunker, though he knows it has only been maybe two hours. He’s managed to evade being pulled over so far, but he’s driving so far above the speed limit he’s not sure how. He’s almost there and, though he knows it won’t do anything, he’s praying that Dean is still alive. Cas doesn’t even know how much time has passed since he heard Dean’s prayer. He whips around the last bend and comes to an abrupt stop, jumping out of the car and striding determinedly to the door of the bunker. For just a moment he pauses, unsure if Dean will actually want to see him, if he is alive. The Empty took him so soon after his confession he wasn’t sure what Dean’s reaction had been. Cas shakes the hesitation off; he needs to know if Dean is alive and well. If Dean doesn’t want to see him after that, he can leave. 

Cas urgently pounds on the door. After a moment he hears footsteps on the other side before the door swings open and he is face to face with Dean Winchester, alive and looking mostly well.

“Cas?” Dean breathes.

He smiles, knowing Dean is safe.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Confession time!

“Dean,” Cas smiles at him. “You’re ok.”

“Cas, how are you here? How are you alive?” Dean’s shocked face quickly grows suspicious. “What are you,” he demands.

“It’s really me, Dean. Go ahead and run your tests,” Cas says. Dean is still frozen in the doorway so Sam squeezes around him to check that Cas is, well, actually Cas. He runs through all their usual tests while Dean stands, still staring at Cas like he can’t believe he’s standing on their doorstep.

“Dean. It’s really him,” Sam confirms. “And, um, I think he’s human?”

Dean finally looks away from Cas’ face to glare at Sam in confusion. Sam gives him a little shrug, just as confused as Dean is. 

“Yes, I am,” Cas says in his dry, blunt manner. “It’s how I got out of the Empty.”

Dean steps back from the door, letting Sam and Cas inside. He grabs Cas’ shoulder as he goes to walk past him and stares him in the eye. “It’s really you, you’re back?” he asks desperately.

“Yes, Dean. I-” Cas is interrupted as Dean pulls him into a tight hug.

“Man, I thought I lost you for good this time,” Dean says into his shoulder. He pulls back, grabbing Cas at the back of his neck. “Don’t do that again. And once you tell us how you’re back, how you’re okay, you and me. We’re going to talk.”

“Alright,” Cas mutters. He is relieved that Dean seems happy to see him, though he is a bit nervous about this talk Dean wants to have. They make their way down the stairs and into the library, sitting at the table where all their names are carved. Cas sees that his and Jack’s names have been added and his eyes grow soft, a small smile curving hips lips. 

“So, Cas, what happened? Dean said the Empty took you and Billie, we didn’t think there would be any coming back from that,” Sam asks. He knows there was more to it, though he’s not sure he’ll ever get the full story. Still, he’s seen Dean every time they think Cas is dying or has died, and he’s never seen him fall apart that much before. It was obvious that this time Dean didn’t really have any hope Cas would come back, as much as he may have wanted to try to save him. 

“I didn’t think so either,” Cas admits. “But then I heard Dean’s prayer, and I realized the Empty couldn’t hold on to me if I was no longer an angel. So I cut out my Grace and I ended up back here on Earth. Found a car and got here as fast as I could.”

“Wait a minute, you cut out your Grace?” Dean demands. “Why the hell would you do that?”

“It was the only way, Dean. I needed to be sure that you were safe,” Cas says without looking up from the table. Sam looks between the two, raising his eyebrows at the obvious tension now in the room.

“But. Your Grace? Are you sure about this?”

“Well, there’s no getting it back now, it’s been absorbed by the Empty, so yeah, I think I’m sure,” Cas responds, exasperated, looking at Dean and tilting his head.

“And you’re really okay with that,” Dean says more like a statement than a question.

“Yes, Dean. It was my choice.” Cas’ voice is final, clearly putting an end to this discussion.

“Alright, alright. That’s just. A lot to give up, you know?” Dean says, looking away from Cas. Sam almost laughs - this isn’t exactly the first time Cas has given everything up for Dean, yet Dean always acts like he can’t understand why.

“Well, Dean is mostly fine. Might’ve gotten a little impaled, but he’s on the mend. You have got to be pretty hungry though,” Sam says, knowing it was an adjustment for Cas the last time he was human.

“Hm. Now that you mention it, actually, yes. I am quite hungry,” Cas replies, not having noticed before that that was hunger he was experiencing. 

“Okay, I’ll go rustle something up for you.” Sam heads to the kitchen to make Cas some food, knowing he and Dean will need a moment.

Dean and Cas are left sitting at the table. Cas is on the end, staring at all their names in the wood. Dean sits on the side to his left, chair turned toward Cas. His elbows are on his knees and he’s staring at the floor. A whole night of thinking and he still isn’t sure what he’s going to say. Maybe he’s worked it up to more than it needs to be, but it feels so massive he doesn’t know where to begin. This may be the most important thing he has ever needed to discuss and he does not want to mess it up. But Dean’s pretty sure saying nothing would be messing it up more than anything he might say. 

“Dean, I don’t want you to feel pressured to say anything, that wasn’t my intention. If you want, we can carry on like nothing happened,” Cas says apologetically.

“No, Cas, that’s not what I want. I need to say this, I just. Don’t know where to start.” Dean’s voice is rough. “This stuff has never been easy for me, you know that. But I need you to know that what you want, I thought I could never have.” 

Cas looks up sharply, but Dean holds up a hand. “No, if I don’t finish this now, I don’t think I’ll be able to start again. Cas, for so many years now, I’ve been wanting something I thought I didn’t deserve. I’m still not sure I do, but this having my life to myself thing really is making me want to be a little selfish. And to hear you say…” 

Dean trails off, and finally looks up at Cas. Their eyes meet and Dean looks like he’s gearing himself up. 

“I love you too, Cas,” Dean says, his voice a little shaky. Cas lets out a breath like he’s been punched in the chest and leans forward. He grabs Dean’s shirt and pulls him close.

“Tell me to stop,” he whispers.

Dean just leans in and closes the space between them. The world disappears around them as they cross this last line, feeling at once brand new and like they’ve come home.

Sam walks into the library carrying a plate of food for Cas. He’s about to say something when he notices Dean and Cas wrapped up in each other like there’s no tomorrow. He freezes, eyebrows shooting up. _Finally_ , he thinks and, as quiet as he can, backs out of the library, leaving the plate of food in the kitchen for them to find.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some conversations are had... What comes next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter to go, just an epilogue. Lmk in the comments if there's something you want to see!

Much later, Dean gets Cas settled in his room. Cas doesn’t have anything with him of course, but the few things he had left at the bunker they move into the second nightstand in Dean’s room. For a moment, Dean wonders if this is too fast, but quickly pushes the thought away. It’s been almost a decade they’ve both been feeling this and doing nothing, this might be the slowest building relationship ever. It’s earlier in the evening than Dean would usually go to bed, but he’s still weakened after being impaled and Cas is freshly human, so they’re both beat and are soon laying in bed facing each other.

“It seems like this shouldn’t feel as comfortable as it does,” Dean says softly. “I mean, it feels like we’ve been here forever.”

“I know what you mean. It feels,” Cas pauses, “right.”

“Yeah,” Dean agrees. “So, where do we go from here?”

“Well, I’m not sure I’ll be much help on hunts now.” Cas chuckles. “It never was my strength.”

“No, not really. Sure was always fun, hunting with you,” Dean says. “Pretty sure that was more about being with you than the actual hunting part of it though.”

They both smile, remembering the hunts they’ve been on together. It’s been a long road for the two of them, and Dean feels almost in shock that they’ve gotten here. Talking about their future gets Dean thinking about the job application still sitting on his desk and what it might mean for the both of them.

“Actually, Cas,” Dean says hesitantly, “I’ve been thinking recently. I might want to start easing back on hunting. Been thinking about what I really want in life and I think… I think I want to move on.”

Cas smiles fondly at him. “You have always been more than just a hunter Dean. I know you’ll be great at whatever you choose to do.”

“Thanks, Cas. I don’t know exactly what everything will look like, but honestly, that’s the best part. We’ve got our whole lives ahead of us and we can do whatever we want now.” Dean’s voice gets softer, both men tired from the day. Cas hums his agreement, eyes closing as he falls asleep. Dean watches him for a moment before shutting his eyes as well. For a moment, his mind is quiet, the first time in a while he’s felt at peace, before a thought hits him and his eyes fly back open. 

“Oh, shit. I’ve got to tell Sam about us.”

***

The next morning, Dean and Cas are eating breakfast in the kitchen. From the moment they woke up, Dean has been worrying about what to say to Sam. Deep down he knows Sam will be fine, but he’s never had a relationship he cared this much about keeping. And he’s sure as hell never had to come out before. He’s known he’s bi for many years now, but never felt comfortable enough to bring it up. He knows that speaks a lot to how they were raised, but he honestly thought it wouldn’t matter anyways, having assumed he’d never have an actual relationship to make coming out necessary.

Cas calmly watches Dean fret all the way into the kitchen, through making breakfast, and can tell he’s still worrying it over in his head while he eats. He looks up as Sam enters and grabs some coffee.

“Morning!” Sam says brightly.

“Dean and I are together,” Cas says bluntly.

Dean chokes on his bacon and his eyes go wide. He stares, frozen, at the table in front of him waiting for Sam to respond before slowly looking up at his brother. Sam holds a straight face, cackling internally at the deer in the headlights look on Dean’s face. He waits for a long moment, letting Dean sweat, doing his best to cement this moment in his memory, before he lets a small grin onto his face.

“Yeah, I know. About time.”

What?” Dean exclaimed.

“Dean. It’s not like you’ve been subtle,” Sam says, smirking at him. “And I’m not blind. But I figured you weren’t ready to tell me so I didn’t say anything. I’m really happy for both of you.”

“Huh. Well. Thanks, Sammie.” Dean is more surprised than he perhaps should be that Sam had noticed, but he is relieved that he knows now and is happy for them. Cas has continued to eat his breakfast next to him completely unbothered. 

“So you two got any plans for today?” Sams asks. “I haven’t found anything for us to work on today, just a couple cases that are closer to Jody. I’ll give her a call after I finish my coffee.”

Cas shakes his head and Dean realizes this might be the best time to talk to Sam about that job application.

“I, uh, I actually got something to do,” he starts. Sam nods toward him and he takes a deep breath. “I’m applying to work at a bar not too far from here. I think after everything, I need something different.”

Sam looks more surprised by this than anything else said this morning. “You taking a break from hunting?”

“Just backing off a bit for now, but honestly I think. I think eventually I want to stop. Let someone else take over,” Dean explains. “We’ve been doing this a long time, Sam. I’m tired.”

“Yeah. Yeah, that makes sense.” Sam nods. “I’ve kind of been having a similar thought. You know, when we had all those hunters here from apocalypse world, it was nice, having other people we could send out, other people to rely on.”

“Yeah, and I bet Eileen would be happier having you around more,” Dean says with a grin.

“Ha, yeah, you’re not wrong.” Sam smiles shyly. “We’ve been talking about it, and I think it’s the right move.”

“So I’m talking to the next Bobby, huh?” Dean chuckles.

“Yeah, I guess. And hey, you could be the new Ellen,” Sam shoots back.

“Huh. There’s an idea.” Dean hadn’t really considered it, but it’s true, the hunting community really lost something when Ellen died, and not just a good friend. Might be something to consider, further down the road. Cas looks over and smiles at him, knowing he’s really thinking about it. They finish the rest of their breakfasts in silence and Sam goes to call Jody.

“What do you think, Cas? Want to be a hunter’s bartender?”

“I think it’s perfect Dean. You’ll never really be able to leave this whole world behind, but this way you’ve got more to life than just hunting,” Cas says. Dean smiles at him, knowing Cas understands him better than anyone else. He grabs him around the shoulders and pulls him close.

“Yeah. Guess I’d better finish that application and go get some experience then, huh?”

Cas smiles up at him from under his arm. He leans in for a soft kiss and they sit there a while longer, comfortable in each other’s presence before going to start their day together.


	5. Epilogue - 5 Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> True heaven: a peaceful future filled with family, both found and blood, a future of their own making

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is! I hope you've enjoyed this alternate ending. It's everything I wished the finale would be and didn't get... As much as I knew they wouldn't make Destiel as canon as this, I still wished for better than what we got. But! That's what fanfic is for, right? 
> 
> Lmk your thoughts!!

Sam and Eileen walk into The Roadhouse and look around. Cas is up at the bar wiping a couple glasses off. He puts everything down and waves as he sees them come in.

“Hello Sam, Eileen,” he says, signing as he talks. “Dean’s in the back taking a call, he’ll be right out.”

They both smile at him and Sam helps Eileen into a seat at the bar. She’s pretty far along now and Cas can see she looks eager to have little Adam soon. Miracle trots out from behind the bar and curls up at her feet. Dean comes sauntering out from behind the bar, grabbing a towel and flicking it at Cas as he does. Cas just smiles at him fondly as he walks by. Dean waits until he’s right in front of Eileen and Sam before he says hi.

“Hey there, how’s my awesome nephew and the most wonderful woman in the world today?” He grins at the both of them, looking cheerful and relaxed.

“Tired,” Eileen says, “but good. Counting down the weeks I have left. How is everything going here?”

“Wonderful as always. Just got off the phone with Donna, she was looking into something for a regular. All sorted now,” Dean replies. “Everything good back at the bunker?”

“Yeah, same old,” Sam says. “Found out about a couple new hunters in Washington which is good. Had a bit of a hole in the network out that way.”

“Good, good. Hey you guys just missed Claire, she left maybe an hour ago. Pretty sure she’s coming back this evening though if you’re still around,” Dean mentions hopefully.

“Yeah, figured we’d stay the night while we’re here,” Eileen says. “Claire around a lot?”

“Oh yeah, she’s here about three days a week helping out,” Dean replies.

“It’s been really nice having her around more,” Cas throws in. Sam smiles at him, knowing they’ve worked hard to have a good relationship with each other. It seems to be working out and he’s glad to hear she is there so often. He looks over at his wife and feels so content, so happy they’ve all ended up where they are now. Sam thinks he’s thanked Jack every day for bringing everyone they lost back, but especially Eileen. He also notices she’s looking a little worn out, so he stands to grab their things from his car.

“I’ll be back in a moment, Eileen, I can meet you upstairs,” Sam says.

“Thanks Sam. Dean, Cas it’s so good to see you, I’ll be back down for dinner,” Eileen says, standing up and heading for the stairs.

“Hey, take your time. You two know where everything is, we’ll be here when you’re ready.” Dean smiles at his sister-in-law. Sam walks back in and follows her up the stairs to the guest room. Dean turns to Cas, grabbing him by the waist and pulling him close.

“Slow day,” Dean says, glancing around the now empty bar. “Looks like we’ve got some time to ourselves. Hm, what ever could we do?”

“Well, Dean, I still have to finish cleaning up behind the bar and I thought you were going to call Jody about dinner on Tuesday.”

Dean chuckles at his very literal boyfriend, knowing Cas is just giving him shit. He pulls Cas in for a kiss, quickly getting lost in the feeling of his soft lips. It’s been five years now, but it never gets old; every time he’s blown away by how happy he is, how comfortable he is in this life they’ve built together. He leans back, looking over this wonderful man he’s chosen to spend the rest of his life with. Here, together, they’ve been discovering what brings them both joy and Cas, in this moment, looks truly relaxed and happy.

“Is that my shirt?” he says suddenly, recognizing the comfortable flannel Cas has on.

“I believe it’s our shirt, Dean,” Cas replies dryly. “What’s mine is yours and all that.”

Dean smiles that adorable flirty smile Cas loves. “You got me there sweetheart. Got to admit it does look pretty good on you.”

“Why do I hear a but in that sentence,” Cas states, knowing he’s about to hear something ridiculous next.

Dean grins. “But it’d look even better on my floor.”

“ _Our_ floor, Dean. And in all the years I’ve known you, you’d think you’d have gotten better lines.” Cas smirks, already leading the way to the stairs.


End file.
